“There’s no reason for tailgating to exist other than for people to get together and have a good time,” one Wisconsin fan said. “It’s meant to be a big party.”

With the smell of brats on a grill and the sound of a ping-pong ball falling in a Solo cup, tailgating brings fans closer to their favorite schools.

In a journey to some of the Big Ten’s most dominant football schools, there are guaranteed tailgating surprises — adults do play beer pong (sometimes underhanded) and U-M students do know what a party is (though some consider it to be a group of four or more gathering at the library).

Whatever you do, don’t confuse Bucky the Badger with the Buckeyes.

As you examine the finer things in bean dip, an octa-bong or face paint, keep in mind it is all about the party.

Let’s get ready to tailgate.

University of Michigan

U-M fans say this year’s 0-2 start to the season cast a dark cloud over the stadium. Some, such as U-M senior Alex Roehling, say the atmosphere has found its way outside the walls of the Big House.

“If the football team sucks, Ann Arbor sucks,” Roehling said.

Ann Arbor and the U-M campus are a blend of urban and residential areas, with tailgating in significant clumps — Ann Arbor Pioneer High School and the Ann Arbor Golf and Outing Club have been long-standing homes for hundreds of Wolverine alumni.

On a campus that lacks a designated tailgating area, students are left to fend for themselves. They often end up at houses and fraternities around the stadium.

The team support is still noticeable, when the lots and porches empty and the stadium fills by kickoff — a rarity for fans at other schools.

“Everyone here is interested in the game,” Wixom resident Marcel Dome said. He said when the team is down, the Big House can hold the “quietest 100,000 people around.”

Mike Alexander, a 25-year season ticket holder, said the team’s troubles this year won’t tarnish the Maize and Blue legacy.

As an avid collector of U-M memorabilia, Alexander takes tailgating seriously. His U-M memorabilia collection includes dozens of U-M footballs and more than 100 Wolverine-themed neckties.

“This week, I brought trains and clocks and I have a sign that says, ‘It’s time for Michigan to get back on track,’” he said.

Ohio State University

O-H! I-O! Go Green! #@*%$ YOU!

If you’re from the wrong neck of the woods, you better watch your back at Ohio State.

Women, children and senior citizens aren’t afraid to bear shirts that read, “Choke: The official drink of Michigan football” and “Ann Arbor is a whore.” In the sea of scarlet and gray, anyone at the game might feel left out without a Buckeyes jersey or necklace.

Fans typically park in lots away from Columbus and campus, and the great part about Ohio State is what comes after you take that walk — down Lane Avenue, over the Olentangy River and into the heart of the city.

College life in the biggest city in Ohio gives the feeling that they’re at an NFL game.

Because Columbus police are quick to arrest anyone with an open container in the public domain (MSU suspends open container laws on game days), tailgaters flocking to roadside bars and restaurants.

“They’re busting 60-year-old men who aren’t doing anything,” Columbus resident Patty Crago said. “At the lot we were at last year, if they saw you open a beer, they’d come arrest you.”

Most Ohio State fans said they get by the law in one way or another, but that doesn’t eliminate the hassle.

“It’s a pain,” Ohio State senior Brian Falk said. Falk and his friends spent hours the night before the game vs. Northwestern putting up snow fences around their front yard. “Undercovers who you think are fans come and arrest you.”

The most prominent solution to the open container law is Hineygate, a huge outdoor party that features dozens of food and beer stations across the street from the stadium.

All ages are welcome at Hineygate to watch the Ohio State game or other games on many projector TV screens or participate in wing-eating contests.

“They see it as a money-making opportunity,” Jackson said. “It’s got a carnival feeling.”

University of Wisconsin-Madison

Dave Lambrecht measures the success of his tailgate by the line at his personal porta-potty.

Nine years ago, Lambrecht founded Bucky’s Traveling Bleacher Creatures, calling it a tailgating “corporation” that brings in more than 200 of his friends every week.

The tailgate began the year former Wisconsin running back Ron Dayne broke the NCAA career rushing record, and Lambrecht dubbed his original tailgate bus the “Dayne Train.”

“The day he broke the record, his family came and took pictures in front of the bus,” he said.

The Creatures have worn out three buses and 12 half-grills, Lambrecht said. For the Sept. 22 Iowa game, his group ate more than 600 hamburgers.

“It’s more of an event than a tailgate,” he said. “Last week, you couldn’t even walk through this area. It went from a drunk college thing to almost a networking thing.”

Wisconsin senior Kyle Dropp said tailgating is a lifestyle for students at Wisconsin.

“You go into fall semester looking forward to tailgate,” he said. “The greatest thing is on Saturdays, you don’t even care about the game.”

Wisconsin freshman Chelsey Larson said the competitive football spirit can translate into tailgating excitement.

“Tailgating means showing your school pride, whether it’s winning in a game of flip cup or beer pong or just cheering for your team,” she said. “Waking up on game day morning is like waking up on Christmas. Although there are no presents, you do wake up to kegs on your front porch.”

MSU

Mike Rexin played his first hockey game at Munn Ice Arena and ushered fans into Spartan Stadium as a boy.

Now, Rexin makes the trip back every Saturday and perches in front of the arena with his grill, cooler, satellite dish and friends.

Rexin’s tailgate flies an MSU flag signed by some of the most famous Spartan athletics alumni. Signatures range from former football coach Muddy Waters to former basketball player Mateen Cleaves.

“Here, it’s more of a community thing,” Rexin said. “We’ve had people from Iowa, Notre Dame, Wisconsin and (Indiana) sit down and say MSU fans have the friendliest tailgating in the Big Ten.”

Down the sidewalk from Rexin, eight grown men who never managed to shake the Panchero’s-at-3-a.m. mentality pay homage to their former living quarters at every home game with a banner that reads, “Holden Lifers Official Tailgate.”

“We’re particularly good at throwing good tailgates each year,” said Mark Heitman, a 2002 MSU graduate. “They’ve gotten progressively better. Maybe it’s just because we’ve got more money.”

Heitman and his buddies, who all lived and worked in Holden Hall, tried to tailgate on the dorm’s front lawn but were shooed away by university officials.

The friends, who hail from across the country, think MSU is the place to be.

“At Michigan, they don’t tailgate at all, as far as I’m concerned,” lifer Jason Rosell said. “You’ve got to have lobster and shrimp there. At Northwestern, I guarantee they’re all in the library.”

Ken Wink added, “Wisconsin fans are the meanest assholes I’ve ever met. There are some schools who can appreciate how far you traveled. Not Wisconsin or Ohio State — they’re just mean.”

Chemical engineering senior Chris Love said a lot has changed for students at MSU who tailgate on campus by the Wilson Road tennis courts, the largest concentration of student tailgaters on campus.

“How it was, the cops only intervened when there was a fight or something like that,” he said. “Now, the cops will come get your ID whenever they feel like it.”

Regardless, Love said, “State rocks.”

“We don’t care if you’re a rival or anything like that,” he said. “We just want to have fun with anyone and everyone.”